I'm new to wet shaving (less than 10 shaves) but I'm still having the concern that my foam is not of the consistency of yogurt. It's foamy, and lathers, but it's more foamy than having a thick consistently and is light in spots when applied (I can still see my skin through the foam). So, I think I'm going about this improperly, especially since my foam rises up and clings to the lip of my cup. My question is how much soap do you use? How long should you swirl the brush in the cup? Is a yogurt consistency a must? How much is a dollop of shave cream (or the right amount) to put in the bowl from a tin? How do use an arko stick? Also if the shave is a cream, do you need a brush and should it be of yogurt consistency after being whipped? Really can someone walk me through how to literally take the product out of the tin, place it in the cup (how much and how) and how log should you swish the brush and what should the consistency be. I'm truly concerned, so if anybody can help with a creating shaving foam properly tutorial (its ok to talk to me like a five year old because I need to learn proper techniques before I get further along and ingrain so bad habits). Thanks in advance. Hapless in Houston
I load soaps for 40 seconds unless it's MdC. I add a trickle of water a couple times during the loading. This produces enough lather for 4 to 5 passes and I do 3. When starting out, load heavy and water slowly. It is easier to water dry lather then to add soap to runny lather. Also if you are bowl lathering keep moving the brush.
Consistency of lather varies depending on the razor type you are using. If you shave with a straight, wetter is better. Let's assume you are using a DE. I had issues trying to bowl lather early on. So I face lathered. If your soap puck is not stuck to the container you keep it in, rub the puck on your face. Get you face wet, whether you use hot or cold water. Use your stubble to scratch that soap onto your beard. If using a cream not all are for lathering type. But works the same - squeeze out a blob the size of a checker (1/4" thick and round like a hamberger pickle). Smear it around. This is more of either type of soap than you need but that's OK. More products is better until you get it figured out. If you are using a boar brush it helps to let it soak up water. Badger or synthetic not so much. Either way with a moist, not dry, nor dripping brush rub it into the soap on your face. This whips air into the soap or cream. move in circles, or like you are painting your face. Most soaps will start to foam up withing 10 - 20 seconds. You won't get that yogurty look, but you will see lather. If it feels dry dip the brush tip in water. Adding small amounts after each 10-20 second should gradually wet the soap. If after a couple tries you don't have something happening you are using a nonlathering cream, or you don't have enough soap on your face. Some soaps are difficult to lather. Geography and the condition of your water can add to difficulties. If it's Hard water, get a bottle of distilled and try that. So tell me what soaps or creams you are working with, and what type of brush?
One additional thought or memory when I was starting. I tried to get my lather perfect and if it was not I suffered through the shave without fixing it thinking I needed more practice. Well when it comes to shaving, there isn't really any practice it's always game time but for lather there is no crime in adding more soap or water or scraping the batch and starting over. You will often hear people mention test lather. Go ahead and practice making lather until your comfortable. There is no harm and only a tiny amount of soap wasted.
I couldn't seem to figure it out either. I just gave up on it for about a year. On a whim this weekend I decided to bowl lather my C.O. Bigelow cream. I was amazed. Not sure what changed, but I got really nice, slick, dense lather. I haven't tried it with a soap yet, but I don't expect the results to differ too much. Maybe just give it up for 6 months and try again. One thing I think I may have been doing previously was pressing too hard on the brush.
I think that it is much easier to face lather and "get it right" than it is to bowl lather. When you bowl lather, you really don't control all of the elements. For example, what may be perfect bowl lather for a semi-wet face, is too wet for a truly wet face. When you do it directly on your face it seems easier to get a "perfect" lather.
And I feel just the opposite. I find it much easier to "get it right" and get a "perfect" lather in the bowl. But that's me.
One thing I've noticed is that a softer brush might take a bit longer to get a thicker lather than with a stiffer brush.
Logical. A stiffer brush will dig deeper into the soap puck, picking up more soap quicker than a softer brush will.
+2 My first three brushes were boar. Good stiff new bristles that I had to break in. I like my one badger brush for creams in a bowl. Learning to love my first synthetic now. It seems to work well face or bowl lathering, but then I'm not just starting out. It's the little things, and it's all little things.
